Dems rally in Augusta

Urging Democratic voters to go to bed early, and get up with the rooster Friday to remind friends and family, "big Mama" and even "Pookie" in the country to get out and vote, Labor Commissioner Michael Thurmond returned today to Augusta for a third time this week to rally the faithful.

Tuesday's election, in which Thurmond is seeking a U.S. Senate seat, is "more important than 2008" because there are now fewer teachers teaching more students, he said, and the state needs someone to stand up for those who don't have jobs or insurance, he said.

"Right has no color," said the son of a third-generation Athens sharecropper, Paine College graduate and three-term Georgia commissioner of labor.

Arriving at the Democratic rally on a school bus today was former Gov. Roy Barnes, who's seeking another term.

If not to educate its young, "what does the state exist for anyway?" said Barnes. During Georgia's eight years under a Republican governor and legislature, "it's shameful, if not immoral what's happened to schools."

One of many Georgia Association of Educators members wearing green T-shirts at the rally, held at Julian Smith Casino, retired Freedom Park Elementary School teacher Freddie Berrien said she supported Barnes and had forgiven him for eliminating teacher tenure during his prior term.

"He did, but he asked for forgiveness, and everyone deserves to be forgiven," Berrien said.

Barnes and Russ Edwards, candidate for the District 10 congressional post, slammed their Republican opponents.

Republican gubernatorial candidate Nathan Deal voted four times against equal pay for women and four times against increasing the minimum wage, Barnes said.

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As an educator and opponent of the old union-Democrat alliance that's continuing to stifle true reform -- I hope my fellow teachers will look elsewhere for professional services, and elsewhere for political leadership.

Everyone interested in the education issue, by the way, should go see the movie WAITING FOR SUPERMAN.

I went to the Rally and the Democrats were fired up, ready to roll. We are going out Tuesday to the polls in masses . We must defeat those
radicals who want to return to the good ole days when Blacks and women were mistreated.the days when we had poor people in the streets begging for food I remembered those days. Presidents Roosevelt and Lyndon Johnson changed all of that with safety net programs.

Rozzie, do you just make stuff up full time? No one wants to return to the days YOU describe. Cite your source, please.

What conservatives want is fiscal discipline. A government under control. Not a govt borrowing $3 TRILLION over 22 months in office. We want leaders who aren't crooks. Leaders who won't lie to us. Leaders who want to restore our country to prosperity, not tear it down by calling some groups the "enemy". Leaders who inspire people to work, not promise them goodies if they don't work. That's it.

You need to do some more research. You are either very young and naive or you are intentionally posting lies. Which is it?

The democrats have done nothing but tax and spend, enable the non productive members of society to continue being non productive and greatly fool minorities into thinking they are best for them.

The republicans are by no means great but the view of self reliance, self responsiblity, smaller government, less taxes, and less enabling is what most republicans stand for and is what we need to be striving for in this country.

More money for schools does not eaual better schools - Private schools operate on less than 1/2 of what public schools spend per child and yet they successfully graduate 98% and have far superior SAT scores. Public schools are lucky when they graduate over 75% and here in Richmond County, that would actually be an acheivement. Lets go with school vouchers and the successful schools will excel and those failing to teach will close - no more tax pay money is needed, in fact a lot could still be cut from the waste in our public shools and elsewhere.

I personally don't see how any educated, self reliant individual who belives in personal responsibility and acountibility could vote for bigger government and more government control through higher taxes.

Rozzie, government, to include our Presidents, can't change or do anything for anyone without taking from someone else as government has no money. Anything given to anyone for any reason from the government was done so at the expense of a hard working taxpayer who is a contributing member of society.

Charity is by far a better way to help those in need than government programs.

As far as anyone wanting blacks, women or anyone else to suffer and/or be mistreated...The only party holding people back is the party of enabling which belongs exclusively to democrats. This is America and everyone has the same opportunity if they choose to accept it. If you wish to sit back and wait on the government to take care of you, you will never acheive anything. Even the democrats will only be able to enable so much and anyone with 1/2 a brain should be able to easily figure this out, get off of their rear end and take advantage of free education in order to be productive members of society.

I was at this rally and to listen to Roy Barnes he makes out like Georgia led the country in education when he was in office. We give the education dept. millions in lottery money and we are still 49 of 50. Yeah them democrats are all fired up all 300 of them at the rally. If that was the best of the party they are in serious trouble.

Everyone interested in the education issue needs to look at the 1 in 5 children with a learning disability and that would include looking at the autism epidemic including ADD and ADHD and that would also include looking at the environmental cause.

While you are waiting for Rozzi, I will give it a stab: The Democrats view humanity only in terms of blocks of special interests. They see illegal immigrants as one of those blocks. By making them "legal" through an amnesty process, the Democrats see many millions of new voters at very little cost to their party. Of course, there is a great cost to our country, our liberty, and the rule of law; but the Democrats care not one whit for those things.